Enchantment Review: July 2005

This is a review of my 6 night sailing on the Enchantment of the Seas.

July 11 - 17, 2005

Prior cruising experience:

Celebrity Century

Carnival Celebration

Celebrity Mercury

Celebrity Summit

Golden Princess

Rhapsody of the Seas

DH and I sailed on the Enchantment with our two children...ages 9 and 12.

Pre Cruise

We flew into Newark and stayed at the Hyatt Regency on the Hudson in Jersey City...for 2 nights pre cruise. The cab fare from Newark to the Hotel was $38.00 plus tip.

The Hyatt is a great hotel. It is in an excellent location...across the Hudson River from where the Twin Towers once stood. The Manhattan Skyline is right there. Excellent photo opportunities of the Skyline.

(The Path)...the underground train that travels under the Hudson River into Manhattan is right outside the front door of the Hyatt. The cost to use The Path is $1.50 per person, each way.

The Path (going into Manhattan) takes you right into the site of Ground Zero. Simply amazing. .....to be right there and to see the space where the Towers stood.

We met a man on the pier @ the Hyatt...he was catching crabs with a cage. He is a Broker in Manhattan...a few buildings away from the Towers on 9/11. He was part of the Bucket Brigade in the aftermath of 9/11. He transported rubble (including body parts)....bucket by bucket out of the area. After the 9/11 cleanup, he left the city for 8 months. He says it is still hard.

I highly recommend the Hyatt in Jersey City. The prices in the restaurant were very high, but I guess that is to be expected. The location is great.

We toured New York City (private tour) in a Limo for 4 hours. There was a limo driver and a tour guide. This was arranged with Romancing Manhattan Tours. What a tour ! We saw so many places! ...all in the comfort of a limo. Highly recommend.

Next Up: Embarkation !

Embarkation: We left our Hotel @ 10:00 am and drove 20 minutes to the Port in Bayonne, New Jersey. The cab fare was $40.00 plus tip.

There were still folks getting off the ship by 10:30 am....when we were ready to get on. We were one of the first 50 to board the ship. We processed through....and were on the ship by 11:30.

There are two buildings @ this port. When you drop your luggage and process in.....you (and your luggage) are then taken by shuttle bus to the next building. It is only a 2 minute drive. The second building is where you access the ship.

We board and head immediately for the Spa. I am the # 2 person to book an appointment. This is fortunate, because there is only ONE nail tech to handle all of the manicures/pedicures that are to be done on the ship.

Off to the Buffet. Our rooms will not be ready until 1:00 pm....a sign tells us.

Our cabin(s): We have booked two category D1's on Deck 7. These are balcony cabins. They connect...as we have the two children and are not comfortable with them being in a separate cabin that is not connecting.

The cabins are very nice. Plenty of storage space. The bedspread on our bed (two twins put together) appears to be brand new. The spreads on my children's beds (two twins separated) do not appear to be new.

Only one electrical socket in each cabin.

The safe needs a credit card to activate. This credit card will now need to be carried around with me for the entire cruise. The Credit card will be used to open and close the safe.

What if you do not have a credit card? I don't know.

It specifically says that you cannot use your key/charge card to activate the safe.

Sailaway: Scheduled for 5 pm. Delayed because they did not have all of the luggage onboard the ship.

They also took a lady off of the ship....in an ambulance. No further information.

Muster Drill: Done @ 4:30 pm...prior to sailing. They did take a roll call when we got outside. There were safety announcements that were being made during the drill. We were unable to understand any of the words. Poor sound system. The drill took about 15 minutes.

The Enchantment of the Seas sailed about 5:45 pm.

The Overall Condition of the Ship: The ship is in great shape. The pool area is great. There was a hint of new paint smell along the pool area.

We were disappointed to learn that RCI had not yet printed any maps of the ship ! Not even a temporary map. We were lost most days.

There is a diagram of the ship at each elevator...which is what we seemed to constantly be consulting.

We like to have our map....and know ahead of time, where we are headed.

Luggage:We received our luggage within an hour of boarding. There were many, though.....who boarded around 1:00 pm....and did not get their luggage until 8pm.

I think RCI and the Port are still working through the boarding process.

Entertainment: RCI has mastered the art of providing quality entertainment for its passengers on this ship.

We were very pleased with the entertainment.

The production shows were above excellent. The Guest performers John Joseph and Johnny B are not to be missed. They perform together. Really, folks....do not miss this show.

The music in the lounges (what little we saw) was very good. ....as were the musicians performing in the Atrium.

RCI is not cutting costs in the area of Entertainment, onboard the Enchantment of the Seas.

Cruise Director: Mr. Matt Baker.

We did not see much of this guy......but what we did see, we liked. He is very, very talented. He sings, dances, and is funny ! Oh...he plays the harmonica, too ! :D

Coming up next: We're heading to Boston !

I think the in room safes will take any card with a magnetic strip, on our last two cruises we used our disneyland annual passes to open and close the safe. This way if we lost it, it wasn't a big deal.:D

The Port of Boston:

We have arranged a private tour of Boston....for about 5 hours. Our tour guide meets us at the pier. We walk a minute to our van....and there is also a van driver.

We are off....... all through the historical streets of Boston. We tour the U.S.S. Constellation....see Paul Revere's Home....see Mother Goose's grave site....admire the awesome buildings in Boston...and even get to see John Kerry's home, among many other sites.

We shop....and visit the bar that inspired the TV show "Cheers". Cute photo opportunity.

At the recommendation of our tour guide, we have lunch at a place called "Legal Seafood". Excellent recomendation. We have great seafood...and pay a lot of money. :D I understand that Legal has several locations in the Boston area.

Coming up next: The Dining Room Experience !

Now THAT'S good to know, whitshel. So, I can carry an old, expired credit card, and as long as it has a magnetic strip, it should work? I like that idea of not worrying about carrying a potentially valuable credit card around the ship.

Carol

The Dining Room Experience: We had Main Seating in the My Fair Lady Dining Room onboard the Enchantment of the Seas. Main seating is @ 6:00 pm.

This was a good time for us to eat, other than the fact that we had to quickly get back from port days...in order to be ready for dinner by 6.

The dining room is beautiful. The food was almost always very, very good. The service was very friendly....and good. Note: Not excellent.

Sometimes slow. Sometimes rushed. Just not excellent.

The desserts were lacking in quality and selection. Not across the board....just in general.

Our head waitress (almost a Maitre' d position).....was excellent. She was very attentive to my children. We could tell that she really loved her job. Cecilia is from Romania.

Two days in the dining room, the staff was presented. ie: they were paraded around for us to acknowledge. This was a very nice concept....it is just that it was not done very well. I have seen this done on Celebrity ships....and RCI was lacking on their presentation. Also, during these two "parades".....they played VERY, VERY loud music on the loudspeakers. I mean....it hurt my ears !

Also, other than these two brief moments, we never heard any music in the dining room. No live music being played during dinner. Why not? :confused:

Dress Code in the Dining Room: There were two Formal Nights...and 4 Casual Nights.

The "casual" issue might need to be addressed.

The Daily Program (Cruise Compass) specifically stated that casual is "dresses or slacks and blouses for women, sport shirts and trousers for men". This does not mean...t-shirts with words on them.

We observed many folks with a very, very casual approach to the casual attire. For some, it was obviously whatever they wore around the ship all day. Not all, of course....but many.

Did this bother me? Not really. I just noticed it. And...am mentioning it in my review. :p

Overall, I would say that The Enchantment of the Seas is doing a very good job with their Dining Room Experience.

Coming up next: Bar Harbor !

The safe needs a credit card to activate. This credit card will now need to be carried around with me for the entire cruise. The Credit card will be used to open and close the safe.

 

What if you do not have a credit card? I don't know.

It specifically says that you cannot use your key/charge card to activate the safe.

We used a costco card. You can also use a library card, etc.

Overall' date=' I would say that The Enchantment of the Seas is doing a very good job with their Dining Room Experience.[/quote']

 

Glad to see they are improving in the dining room. During our cruise it was a mess. Both food and service was lacking.

The Port of Bar Harbor:

or...should I say "Ba Ha Ba" ? :D

What a great place !

All ships will tender in Bar Harbor.

We did a one hour trolley ride with Oli's Trolley...booked independently...and in advance. This ride took us through town...and up to Cadillac Mountain. Cadillac Mountain is in Acadai National Park. It was very cold up at the top...and windy. We really needed our sweatshirts that we brought with us.

We also had a reservation for a Horse Drawn carriage ride through Acadia National Park. We took a bus to Wildwood Stables for a two hour ride. The two hours included a 40 minute stop at Jordon Pond for a lunch/snack. The food is not included in the price. We had a great lunch out on the back yard of the property....along the water.

Bar Harbor has a free bus system. A very nice bus system. The buses were very clean and the drivers were very nice. They have several different routes. The buses only hold about 30 people. So, if you need to make the 12:15 bus....you might want to be there by 12:00....to ensure that you get a seat. They allow some people to stand, but not very many.

The shopping in Bar Harbor is great. I saw Bar Harbor as being the best place to shop on this Boston, Bar Harbor, Halifax Itinerary. All the shops are close together...along with the bus stop, ice cream shops, etc....

A very lovely port. The Temperature in Bar Harbor was in the 60's. Much colder up in the mountains...as previously stated.

Coming up next: Halifax !

I'm looking forward to my first trip to Bar Harbor this fall on the NCL Jewel. Sounds nice.

The Port of Halifax, Nova Scotia:

Having to clear Customs, it took a while for the passengers to be allowed to disembark in Halifax. We arrived @ 8:00. I think it was after 9:00 before we saw folks getting off.

We arranged a private tour of Halifax with Greg Inglis of Kiwi Kaboodles's Tours and Travel. Greg is good. He books up and had to turn business away. We had such an enjoyable day with Greg....I highly recommend his tour.

Greg is from New Zealand. Very nice. Very knowledgeable. Very accomodating.

Greg picked us up along the waterfront in Halifax. He uses a mini van. He is the driver and the tour guide. His pricing is very reasonable.

We toured Halifax and then headed to Peggy's Cove...a 30 - 40 minute drive outside of Halifax. Arriving in Peggy's Cove, we are wowed by the sites ! The water, the rocks, the Lighthouse.....you just have to see it. There is a Post Office inside the lighthouse....so be sure to bring your addresses with you if you visit Peggy's Cove.

We had lunch at a tourist restaurant in Peggy's Cove, which has a large gift shop inside. They have great black/white prints for sale in this shop.

Proper shoes are required for walking around at the lighthouse area. Waves and wet rocks are treacherous...as we were warned several times.

I highly recommend a tour to Peggy's Cove. We were there about 1.5 hours....and could have used another 30 minutes to venture through the Cove...of only 60 residents. The Swiss Air Memorial is just outside of Peggy's Cove.

Greg ended our tour by dropping us at the Maritime Museum. We were very interested in the Titanic Exhibit. We paid $18.00 for a family day pass to the Museum. Time is running short for us, as we need to head back to the ship for our 6 pm dinner (Formal Night). We have only time for the Titanic Exhibit and it is very good. Of special interest is the breakdown of the 1st/2nd/3rd classes onboard the Titanic....what their cabins looked like....the different menu's they were offered...the prices they paid to sail.....and the advertisements that were published to sell this cruise on the Titanic.

I highly recommend this Museum.....but allow a couple of hours, to see the other exhibits.

I highly recommend Greg Inglis as a tour guide for Halifax. Did I say that already? :D

A 20 minute, very pleasant walk back to the ship from the Museum...on the Halifax boardwalk.

Upon boarding, you will need a photo ID...and your charge/key card...as you will have been on Canadian Soil.

Final Comment on Halifax: I love Canada. I have been to Canada on three occasions. I love the slow pace, cleanliness and how the Canadians are very "content" with whatever they are doing in life. I hope you Canadian Cruise Critics are aware of what you have. ;)

Coming up Next: Onboard Photography and the Children's Program !

Now THAT'S good to know, whitshel. So, I can carry an old, expired credit card, and as long as it has a magnetic strip, it should work? I like that idea of not worrying about carrying a potentially valuable credit card around the ship.

 

Carol

Once we figured out that the safe would take any card with a magnetic strip, we used a Safeway bonus card.

onboard photography: They had about 3 (perhaps 4) professional photos of the Enchantment....post stretching....for sale in the Photo Department.

ONE was decent. The others were very poor. These were all taken the week prior to my sailing. Quick, take the picure....we need to have them to sell them. Regardless of the light....the location, the angle...etc.

Seriously, I could not believe they were selling them.

On the last morning, prior to leaving the ship (Photo Dept is open)....I mentioned my observations to a guy in the photo lab. He defended their position (hurry, take the picture)....and I presented my opinion. What I told him, was not a surprise to him.

My 12 yo DD....and a group of 5 other friends that she met on the ship....had their photo taken one evening at one of the stations. The photo came out very good. Two of the kids were wearing shirts/sweatshirts...with two of the Port names on them. Boston/Bar Harbor.

RCI has asked for parental permission to use the photo for promotional purposes. The parents had to sign a waiver.

It really is a cute picture.

They have a photographer taking pictures of the Bungie Trampoline activity and the rock climbing activities..... very cute photos there.

The photo they took when we were checking in.....(Welcome Aboard).. had only a dull poster to the side of the where the people were standing. Perhaps it is the new itinerary for the "new" ship....and they are not "in gear" yet. I only tell what I see. :D

Postcards: There were no "post stretch" postcards of the Enchantment avaiable for purchase. They only had "a few" of the pre stretch postcards. I believe they were allowing their supply to dwindle.

The Children's Program: Both of my DD's participated in the program whenever they could. They both loved it. Both signed themselves in and out of the program.

If you have a child in the "12 - 14" program.....it is pretty important that you have your child down to the program on the first day (the day you sail). They have special "meet the other kids" games that they play....and are instumental for setting the pace for the entire week.

The "12 - 14" program ended @ midnight each night. We learned a lesson here: If we have a port stop the next morning....my DD will not be staying out till midnight. She loved being with her new friends....but, she was a sleepy tourist the next morning. In the future, we will give her a 10 pm curfew on nights before ports.

Up Next: Disembarkation...and Final Comments ! :D

Disembarkation: I am sorry to report that RCI fell way, way short in this area. I was so surprised ! How could they allow this process to be so unorganized? This is not a new cruisline with no experience.

The details:

A few days into the cruise....we received a paper in our cabin, telling us to sign ourselves up for when we needed to debark the ship. If you have a flight check here. If you are on deck 3 check here, etc.... Mistake # 1 for RCI.

We had an 11:55 am flight out of Newark. We could see from the form, that we would be the second group off of the ship.

There were about 19 "colors" of luggage tags.

This "sign yourself up" for when you will debark will not work. There was compete disorder and confusion and frustration and stress.

They plan to start the process @ 8 am. I believe it was an hour and a half later that they started the process. Yes, there was Customs to clear.

So, they call the first color...and then within a few minutes, they are calling the second color and the third. Mass exodus of the ship begins to occur....by way of the stairs. And I mean MASS. Completely jammed up stairwells...floor after floor. Bathrooms with jammed up commodes were everywhere.

We (11:55 am flight) were in with folks who have 8 pm flights out of Newark.

If you booked your flight with RCI, (regardless of the time)you were in the first group off of the ship. All other flight followed immediately. Please help me to know the sense behind this.

Folks of ALL color tags were leaving the ship with the first group. Folks who were on deck 4...were leaving the ship as if they had a flight.

It is not the fault of the passengers. The system was at fault. RCI failed to provide an effective and organized disembarkation plan.

It was a very, very uncomfortable situation. We were very tighly meshed together in the stairwells. It was hot.

In case you have never noticed....some folks tend to be a little cranky on the morning of disembarkation. They are tired and they have spent way too much money. This did not make for good times in the stairwell.

At the bottom of the stairs....you then wait for a bus to take you over to the first building. (They also have to transfer all of the luggage over to the second building). When you get there you try to find your luggage.

Then: the taxi situation. What a mess. We are in line for a taxi....the supervisors (for the taxi's) are yelling at each other. They are acting very nervous. They simply did not have their organization together and we were late for our flight.

We were placed in a 10 passenger van. $12. 00 per person, plus tip. Wow...that 15 minute van ride brought in $120.00 plus tips.

At the airport...we are in a major rush. We pay the first Class Continental Checkin guy....a triple tip for him to process us. We were not flying first class.

Flights were delayed all day. We arrived home 5 hours later than planned.

Bottom line on Disembarkation: RCI....get with the program. You left a lot of folks on a sour note as they left your cruise.

Final Comment: RCI did a very good job.

My experience on Celebrity Cruiseline.....gives me something to compare, however.

I am currently booked on a Celebrity cruise (Europe 2006) and will more than likely seek out a Celebrity cruise in the far future.

Celebrity excels above RCI in service and food. Period.

Was RCI a great cruise? yes.

Do I recommend this cruise on the Enchantment? Yes.

Did I have a great time? Yes.

BTW, I was surprised to talk to several folks onboard the Enchantment who have never heard of Celebrity...or Radisson...or Crystal Cruiselines.

This concludes my review. If you have any questions, ask away.....

CC Lingo clarification required for me:

What is a DH and a DD?

:D ......Dear Husband and Dear Daughter.

Hey BOO did the new ship look nice. Is it everything you thought it would be. We will be cruising with her on Feb with family and friends for our first cruise so I hope we have a great time. Was ther a midnight buffet and did you ever eat at chops. How were the seas.

We also just returned from the Enchantment of the Seas July 11 cruise.

We were on a family reunion and we had a total of 3 cabins - one on the 7th floor and two on the second floor. Throughout the entire trip at any given time our bathrooms were inoperable creating a most unpleasant and embarrasing situation. We were forced to use the public facilities - sometimes in the middle of the night only to find many of those bathrooms were not functioning also. Many guests that we met throughout the trip had the same problem. This problem ruined our entire trip and in all our years of cruising we have never encountered such a horrible situation.

thegreenepea

Parts of the ship were very nice and other parts although nice were too small for the number of guests. The Windjammer could not handle the crowd and were not always prepared with lack of silverware and replenishing stations.

Chops was the best part of the cruise. It is well worth the extra money.

thegreenepea

Hey BOO did the new ship look nice. Is it everything you thought it would be. We will be cruising with her on Feb with family and friends for our first cruise so I hope we have a great time. Was ther a midnight buffet and did you ever eat at chops. How were the seas.

The ship looked very nice. Great shape. Like a very new ship.

The Enchantment met all of my expectations. (except for disembarkation)

There was a midnight buffet. It was on day 5. We did not attend as it is very late @ night. Our table mates did go....and they had run out of food by the time they got there to eat. :(

We never ate at Chops. Our children are not old enough to eat there....must be 13 and above.

The seas were very calm. In fact, on the last day (a sea day)...the water looked like a lake. Not a wave or ripple in sight. We had never experienced this before. It was very easy to spot whale spouts in water like this. We saw sharks also. And dolphins. Some folks saw a large sea turtle.

What cabin # did you have on deck 7. Also, are there shower curtains or the newer doors (in the old section)

We also just returned from the Enchantment of the Seas July 11 cruise.

 

We were on a family reunion and we had a total of 3 cabins - one on the 7th floor and two on the second floor. Throughout the entire trip at any given time our bathrooms were inoperable creating a most unpleasant and embarrasing situation. We were forced to use the public facilities - sometimes in the middle of the night only to find many of those bathrooms were not functioning also. Many guests that we met throughout the trip had the same problem. This problem ruined our entire trip and in all our years of cruising we have never encountered such a horrible situation.

 

thegreenepea

So did we make a mistake or are these some of the problems they will work out since they just came out of drydock. Is it possible to get some type of credit. I'm sorry about your trip,maybe you should call and voice you opinion. You probably wre not the only one complaining.